Fading Rose
by Dabi100
Summary: Thanks to her rough past, Ruby has developed a short tempered nature. This has brought everyone to despise her, even herself... However Weiss, her partner, was the thing closest to comfort she's ever had. A comfort which was slipping away... What happens when Cinder enters Ruby's life? And will Ruby and Weiss's relationship be unchanged?
1. Cinder finds Rose

The large and extending hallway of Beacon bustled with its students. Students from various parts of Remnant, from various cultures, were sent here to put their talents to a better use.

To hone their skills to perfection, and to protect lives of others, who are too fragile to protect themselves... Like life itself.

In other words, they were here to become huntsmen and huntresses.

But in Cinder's eyes, they were just mere puppets, too blind to see their own strings. They were oblivious to existence of the puppeteer, they were...

_'Not even worth sacrificing...__' _is what Cinder thought, as she walked past the many teenagers, some taking a moment to adore her.

Well, she couldn't complain too much though. As stupider the puppets are, easier it was to set them on fire. And the best part? They'd still be dancing under the puppeteer, as they continue to burn away.

Besides, she too had some puppets of her own, like the one's following behind her. Literally.

"Mercury, Emerald" She called out, her voice having a seductive and commanding undertone to it. Her 'teammates' stiffened up, reacting immediately to the call.

"make sure not to stand out. **No matter what**" she informed, giving an uneasy press towards the end.

"Yes ma'am" Emerald was the first to reply, followed by a nod from Mercury.

This was gonna be a long run mission, and she couldn't risk drawing too much attention.

Cinder didn't want to admit it, but Beacon's interior where well built. Spacious and fresh, always having a little glow, thanks to the direct sunlight coming in through the giant windows.

It was almost a shame that such a well built monument had to be destroyed.

If possible, after the mission, she could have this all for herself... If her mistress permits.

First thing's first, she was supposed to check on 'The Invincible Girl' Pyrrha Nikos, as she was said to be one of the two Beacon's strongest.

She didn't have any idea on who the other one was, as she had little to no data on the other one. In fact, the only person who ever informed her about the 'other student' was none other Roman himself.

When she told him that she was going to infiltrate Beacon, he put on a serious face, which was too uncharacteristic of him, and said something along the lines of...

_"That Nikos girl is fine and all, but keep an eye out for 'Little Red'."_

Roman being Roman, that's all the info he gave before getting busy with his own little things.

_'But still, there won't be many students that could fit the term 'Little red', so it won't be much trouble finding him... Or her' _Cinder concluded.

_'Maybe I should let Emerald look into thi-' _her thoughts came to a abrupt halt, as an explosion broke out a little further ahead the hallway.

A white smog clotted the path, as the students who were walking around seemed to tense up, some even panicking.

Cinder just hummed amusedly, while her 'teammates' were on guard just in case. The pair of amber eyes switched its focus from one student to another, savouring the panicked etched on their faces.

However, before she could question the cause of explosion, an orange haired girl jumped out of mist.

"Yaayaaa! Ruby's pissed!" she cheerfully yelled, while holding a red and black scythe in her hands. She jumped past Cinder, and landed with a role. Turning around:

"Rubyyy! Come get it!" she yelled once again, waving the scythe all over the place.

_'Ruby,huh... Kinda rhymes with Red' _Cinder thought, a part of her already getting annoyed by Nora's voice.

As the students started running away at the mention of Ruby's name, Emerald just cringed at the immature hyperactive wannabe Huntsmen's.

Cinder watched on, as from the thick smog, a silhouette of a person emerged.

Even the silhouette itself gave off a somewhat... Uncomfortable aura.

Emerald and Mercury furrowed their brows in a defensive instinct, as the silhouette become more and more clear. At least clear enough to make out the feminine figure, slowly walking forward.

The shadow slowly started gaining colour, but its eyes were already vivid. Two orbs of shiny silver, slowly gaining an outline.

As the person finally stepped out of the cloud, Mercury and Emerald's mouth fell agape.

Almost every part of the young girl in front of them, just screamed one thing:

Unique.

There was no other way to put it. She seemed pretty simple, yet strikingly unique.

The girl was shorter than Cinder, but not as short as a certain ice cream girl they knew, that much could be said from a distance.

Her body was slim like Cinder's, but smaller. She had somewhat straight-spiky hair, flowing down to a shoulder length. Though the most contrasting part of her hair would be the colour, which started out as jet black at the top, and smoothly transitioned to strawberry red towards the end.

She possessed a pair of rather rare silver eyes, which seemed like they were almost made of glass.

Her skin... Was attractive, very attractive, yet not flawless. Her skin was a comfortable porcelain, blending perfectly with her hair.

Yet, there were scars... Not many the eye could catch, but they were still there. Few along her arms, one over her neck and collar bone. Considering the aura's healing abilities, the marks left behind by the disappearing scars seemed to date back a long time ago.

Somehow, the little scars only added to her charm.

She wore a red sports bra along with black shorts, showing a generous amount of bust and cleavage, along with a little abs.

However, before they could adore her any further, they caught a glimpse of her eyes.

They shuddered a bit, as her beautiful eyes were contorted into a glare.

Lucky for them, that glare was directed towards Nora, who was standing a few feet behind them.

"Nora..." Ruby hissed, with a deep ,yet very feminine voice.

Cinder, who knew all about being seductive, found Ruby's voice to be slightly... Alluring.

"I'm tired from training, so I don't have time to be running after you. So give. It. Back." she informed, her tone nothing less than threatening.

And as proof of her words, she indeed seemed tired. She had a little sweat all over her body, giving her pale skin a faint glitter under the seeping sunlight.

One could easily say that she had just finished training, but no one could possibly know, that she had been training on one of the deeper parts of the Emerald forest. For 5-6 hours non-stop at that.

"Nahhh! Come get it Rubes!" Nora yelled, turning around and starting to run away.

Had Cinder not learned to keep her emotions in check, she'd have killed Nora for having such an annoying and head piercing personality.

"I said, GIVE IT BACK!" a yell from Ruby echoed throughout the hallway, while she was gritting her teeth, and clenching her fists.

Nora didn't bother responding, as she kept on running.

Ruby clicked her tongue, as she reached into her pocket and pulled out a small, red crystal, and a purple crystal.

Ruby didn't have enough aura left to use her semblance to catch the hyperactive Nora, not when every muscle in her body was intensely fatigued from training.

But, she could still use a ranged dust attack, since it couldn't put too much strain on her body. At least, not too much enough for her to handle.

Cinder watched with new found intrigue, as Ruby tightly held on to the dust crystals on her left hand.

First, Ruby channeled her aura into her fist, causing it glow a luminescent red. However, the aura quickly reacted with dusts, and began glowing a violent maroon.

_'Combined use of dust, huh..' _Cinder thought, nothing less than surprised. Combining dust, and using it required a lot of control over aura, and Ruby was doing it like it was a second nature. Sure, it didn't mean she was that strong, but it did go to show how insane her focus was.

If Cinder's ego permitted it, then she'd have admitted that even she herself had little problems with combining dust. Though if it came to combat, she was sure she was second to no one in this entire school.

With her glare tightening, Ruby raised her flaring fist, and pointed it against the running Nora.

"Die. Nora!" Ruby yelled with anger, as many deep red flames, in the form of tendrils burst forth.

The tendrils whipped through the air, and caught Nora by the legs. Lifting her off the ground and keeping her upside down, Ruby once again glared at her.

"Whaaaat!? Dust!? Ruby no fair!!! It's cheati-" before she could finish, Ruby harshly yanked the tendrils and slammed Nora to a nearby pillar, shattering it in the process.

The students in the hallway screamed in terror, as what Ruby just did, could possibly put someone's life at risk. And Ruby realised that too, as her anger lessened a bit.

However, as the dust cleared, she was relieved to see Nora safe under a barrier... A purple barrier.

"Miss Rose!" came a stern voice, alerting the students to run away.

Following the voice and turning around, she was met with her combat teacher, marching her towards her. She was gripping tightly onto her riding crop, as her blond hair glimmered under the sunlight. But importantly, she had an annoyed look on her face.

Great.

If Ruby knew anything, trying to explain herself to Glynda, was like adding fuel to a raging fire.

So she kept quiet, and waited for the harsh advice session to start.

And it did.

"Miss Rose! I believe you promised there wouldn't be any outburst the last time." Glynda scoffed with a glare, pushing her glasses up.

Ruby stayed silent, very well aware of the futility in attempting to redeem herself.

Letting Glynda batter her hearts out, Ruby pretended to be listening to Glynda, while she let her mind wander.

By the end of the advice, she was simply gonna apologise...

That's what Glynda wanted after all...

It was the same everyday...

Someone would playfully piss her off, and then get her in trouble for something they started.

She'd just quietly stand there, listening to harsh remarks from Glynda, and humiliating rumours from students.

At first, whoever landed her in trouble, would later on apologise to her. And Ruby being the kind heart she is, never ceased to forgive them.

However, as days went by, the apologies faded.

Now, she was just someone to playfully piss off.

Sure, she was strong. Insanely strong. It was the price of her harsh past, and the years of struggling. From the very age of seven, her ability to keep pushing forward, and a consequent necessity to fight Grimm off, it molded her to be a natural fighter.

However, like all things, this too came with a drawback.

The pressure of taking care of her older sister, Yang, who was about to slip into a depression thanks to the departure of Raven and Summer. And her father, who became an alcoholic at the same time, and fighting off the Grimm's they were attracting. It was too much.

As result, it lead to her developing a somewhat... Aggressive personality.

Everyone despised it.

Even herself...

With a sigh, she looked back at Glynda. Hoping she'd shut up.

But she didn't.

Well whatever, she was just gonna stand there for some more time an-

"Professor!" Came a male voice from their side.

For a moment, Glynda stopped lecturing, and turned towards the voice holder. She was met with a brown haired student, who seemed to have a somewhat annoyed look on his face.

"Yes, Mr. Winchester. Can't you see I'm in the middle of something?" Glynda sternly asked, annoyed that she got interrupted.

"I'm sorry for that, but from what I saw, it was Nora who provoked Ruby." Cardin informed, trying to keep his tone in check.

"In fact, I've seen her many times trying to break Ruby's weapon"

Ruby gave him a thankful nod, receiving a subtle one from him in return.

"I see that you are trying to defend your friend here, Mr. Winchester. But, even if that's the case, the stunt ms. Rose pulled was far too reckless" Glynda said, as she then turned to Nora.

"As for you, Ms. Valkyrie. I advice you to stop pulling pranks, you aren't a kid anymore. Also, is it true that you tried to break Ruby's scythe?" Glynda asked, with a tone that promised punishment.

"No professor, I did not!" Nora lied.

"In fact, I think something's wrong with Ruby. All I did was greet her, and the next thing I know, she's trying to cut me with her scythe" Nora threw a false accusation,while biting down the urge to grin.

"Stop lying, bitch! How can yo-" Cardin didn't get to finish his yell, as he was cut off by one of Glynda's.

"Cardin! It is advisable that you hold your tongue in the school grounds. Do keep in mind that I can have you expelled, will you." Glynda reminded him.

Cardin was about to yell back, if not for him spotting Ruby making eye contact with him. Turning to her, he saw her slowly shaking her head, gesturing him not to risk it.

She didn't want him to get hurt trying to help her helpless self.

"Tch!" he loudly clicked his tongue, before cursing under his breath and saying...

"You're too kind, Red. Too fucking kind!!" he grunted, before turning around and angrily stomping away.

As he walked, Ruby just internally appreciated his effort to help.

It was probably just 2 months ago, that Cardin got beat by Jaune in a fight. After being humiliated by the very person he bullied, in front of the entire class, he was broken.

It was Sky's idea to let him ask Ruby to help him, in hopes that he could get back at Jaune someday.

Now, Cardin knew the type of reputation he had in Beacon, so he didn't expect that someone other than his little friend circle would be willing to help him, especially not the infamous, hot headed Ruby Rose.

But he was wrong. Ruby was as kind as anybody could get, in fact, too kind to deny helping someone.

Though the training lasted only for one month, Cardin couldn't believe the improvements he made in such a short time. Turned out Ruby, who learnt everything about fighting from personal experience, was a great teacher. She could understand the mindset of someone training to get stronger, and she had little to no trouble finding and correcting his flaws.

Ruby didn't talk much during much during the training sessions, but Cardin still came to see the good nature she had beneath the short tempered shell.

In the process, they became friends.

And after having such kindness offered to him, asking for absolutely nothing in return, something in him changed. For some reason, he couldn't bear the thought of going back to his old ways.

After all, he couldn't disappoint Ruby, who always took time off her schedule to train him.

But that didn't stop him from challenging Jaune for rematch.

Even if his training lasted only for a month, by the end of it, he was still able to beat Jaune in just two minutes.

Now that Ruby thought about it, maybe that is what got team JNPR to hate her.

After all, in their eyes, all of their team leader's efforts on getting better had been snuffed, thanks to Ruby.

And the fact that Jaune got depressed for some time, thanks to loosing so easily to Cardin publicly, didn't help at all.

_'Maybe I deserve this..._' her partner, Weiss had told her that being so kind would only get her trouble.

And she wasn't wrong...

Maybe another 30 minutes... Until Goodwitch finally lets her go. Though she was sure the someone was gonna land her in trouble again, soon enough...

"Professor Goodwitch"

A lustrous voice caught both their attention, as Cinder came and stood next to Ruby.

For a second, as Ruby looked up at the woman next to her, she was sure that her heart skipped a beat.

'Flawlessly beautiful' was what she thought as she looked at the diabolic woman.

However, the admiration was gone as soon as it came.

Glynda narrowed her eyes, as gave Cinder a quizzical look.

"A student from Haven, I suppose." She said.

"Yes, and my name's Cinder. Cinder fall" She replied, giving a side at Ruby. Ruby found the woman's eyes to have the best glow she's ever seen, they were like rings of molten flames.

"I see. What can I do for you?" Glynda asked while folding her hands.

"Having trouble finding the transfer student dorms?" she asked.

"Yes, that too. But I just wanted to say that this girl... " she said, placing a hand on Ruby's shoulder and giving her a faint smile, before turning back to Glynda and saying "This girl is innocent"

"me and my team saw it ourselves, it was actually that... Girl, who provoked Ruby." Cinder said while mildly eyeing Nora. She also had push down the urge to call Nora a 'Bitch'.

Glynda's eyes almost widened, if not for her not willing to show her emotions. Turning around, she glared at Nora.

"Looks like you need some detention, ms. Valkyrie" Grabbing her hand, she started dragging her towards the class, while Nora was pouting all the way.

"Ms. Rose..." However, before they got any further, Glynda stopped for moment. Before continuing to walk, she said:

"Sorry for that..." And walked away. At the same while, Nora shot Ruby a last glare telling _'I'll get you next time'_ before disappearing into crowd.

_'How long are things gonna stay like this...?' _Ruby thought, with a shake of head.

She didn't want to make an enemy out of Nora, nor anybody in that matter.

Turning to her saviour, she gave a weak smile before asking:

"Thanks for that..." She couldn't say anything else. She couldn't think of a way to start a conversation. Luckily, she didn't have to.

"No need for that" Cinder said, her voice like a deep whisper.

Gently placing a palm over her chest, with a "I'm Cinder Fall", she gestured towards her 'teammates', introducing them as "this is Emerald and Mercury".

Giving them a faint smile, she turned back to Cinder and introduced herself.

"I'm Ruby. Ruby Rose." she said with a smile, her previous anger seeming to have vanished into the air.

"Ruby Rose, huh. I like that name... Almost Rhymes with 'Red', don't you agree?" She asked, gaining a slight chuckle from Ruby.

"Sorry that. Actually, there is someone that calls me by that name." Ruby informed, with an innocent glee.

"A friend?" Cinder asked, with a smug grin on her face.

"Eeeeh no. He's actually a thief.."

"I see..."

_'Well, guess I found the 'Little Red'. It was a lot easier than I expected' _Cinder thought.

But still, this Ruby girl had intrigued her somewhat...

First she eyed Ruby's scars. The brownish pink scars over her cool porcelain skin definitely gave off a... Mysterious feel, to her otherwise cute exterior.

The scar that was utmost visible was the one extending from the side of her neck to her collar bone.

"Ahem" Ruby loudly cleared throat, feeling slightly uncomfortable under Cinder's gaze. Her cute voice totally betraying her rough temper show moments ago.

"Um... C-can I help you?" Ruby asked. After all, Cinder did help her few moments ago.

"Why yes. Yes you can, Ruby." Cinder slid her finger beneath Ruby's chin and coaxed her head to look up at her.

"Say Ruby, We are new to Vale. So I was wondering if someone could show me around the town... Can you?"

Even under Cinder's hot gaze, Ruby's eyes lit up. She found a way to repay this woman for her kindness after all.

"Y-yeah! I will, for sure!" Ruby gave her cheery smile and took her chin off the older woman's fingers.

"T-this is my Scroll number, just message me when, and I'll be there, ASAP!" She said as she gave Cinder her scroll number.

"Sure, I'll contact you soon enough..." Cinder faintly smiled.

"O-kay! I'll see you later!" Ruby said while waving her hand, before turning around and bursting off into rose petals.

Cinder just stood there for some time, before walking off with a smirk.

* * *

Ruby reached her dorm room, and silently opened the door.

As usual, her 'sister' and her partner were nowhere to be seen. Meanwhile, Weiss was elegantly doing her homework, while sitting near the study table.

"Hey Weiss" Ruby said as she entered the room.

"Hi Ruby" Weiss replied, not taking her eyes off her book.

"Hey Weiss...?"

"hmm?"

"Can you sit here?" Ruby asked, gesturing towards Weiss's bed.

"And why i-" while the ice queen was about to ask, she noticed the tired look on Ruby's eyes.

"Oh... Ok"

With no more objections raised, or questions asked, Weiss came and sat on the corner of her bed.

Ruby followed up almost immediately. She threw her knees on either sides of Weiss, and gently sat on her lap.

Even if Ruby was at same height as Weiss, she was a lot lighter. Thanks to which, it was somewhat satisfying for Weiss to do this.

Ruby wrapped her arms around her Weiss's neck, and took her in a tight embrace, while pressing her mature chest against Weiss's.

Weiss often expected Ruby to kiss her when she did this, but thought against it, as she knew Ruby was just too innocent for that.

_'Maybe I'll do it myself... Someday' _Weiss thought, as she gently pat Ruby's back and breathed out a relieved sigh to a side of Ruby's neck.

She can't do anything until the day where her feeling for Ruby are completely true.

"Who was it today?" Weiss asked with a whisper.

"Nora..." Ruby answered with a whisper of her own, while comfortably sinking into the embrace.

"I see..." Weiss said, while fighting down the urge to kiss Ruby's neck.

"I just want us to be friends..." Ruby said.

"shhh... Its okay... I'm here for you.." Weiss said. Oh, how much she wanted to whole heatedly mean what she said. How much she wanted to give all of herself to the little redhead.

But she couldn't...

Currently, her eyes had caught on to a certain blue haired boy. And feelings were a rather conflicting thing.

But the saddest part, she didn't know that Ruby knew it too.

Ruby knew that Weiss was gonna go away someday too, that she was already getting closer to Neptune by the day. She wanted to pull Weiss into a tightest embrace and never wanted to let her go.

But she didn't have the strength to push herself on someone...

As Ruby comfortably laid in the embrace, she felt a slight buzzing in her pocket.

Nobody called her on her scroll, so Ruby had already figured out who it was.

"Thanks... Weiss..." Ruby said, as she got off her.

"Any...time... Ruby" Weiss replied.

Ruby, who noticed Weiss's hesitation, just gave a sad smile before going into the bathroom.

Locking the door behind her, she took out her scroll and read the message.

'I'll be ready by evening, is that time okay for you?' -Cinder.

Ruby just sighed and shook her head, before answering.

'Yes. I'm looking forward to it'

* * *

**A/N: so yeah, this my second fanfic. Hope you liked the first chapter.**

**Leave your thoughts and predictions about it.**

**And tell me if you want a specific topic to be covered in the next chap, I'll try considering it if its not too much.**

**Adios :) **


	2. Slow burn

"Weiss" Ruby called out, standing in front of the cupboard and scanning her looks on the mirror.

She wore a white button up shirt, with the sleeves folded till the forearms. Along with dark blue jeans, and black sneakers. The shirt loosely hugged against her generous C-cup breasts, as she had undone two buttons to give view to a little porcelain cleavage. A thin necklace hung around her neck , with a silver rose pendant resting at the middle of her breast.

_Eye pleasing_ is what came to Weiss's mind as she took a look at her partner.

"Yes, Ruby?" Weiss asked. Her icy blue eyes drifted towards the V at Ruby's breast, but she caught herself up with a blush.

Ruby knew where Weiss looking, but she wasn't sure how to feel about it. Sure, she was happy that Weiss still had an eye for her, but she was just lusting if anything else. If she took that lust seriously, it would just lead to a one time fling, right before Weiss went running back to Neptune. And Ruby hated the idea of being used and thrown aside.

Anyway, pushing away the inner conflict, she answered her crush.

"I'll be out with Cinder today. You know, one of the Haven students?"

"Oh... Doing what?" Weiss asked, narrowing her eyes and feeling a little sour from jealousy. She didn't know why she felt so jealous, but she didn't care. However, it was all snuffed out when Ruby answered saying-

"Oh nothing much, she just wanted someone to show her around Vale, so I kinda volunteered"

"I see.."

_'so she's just helping out' _Weiss sighed with relief, releasing a breath she didn't know she was holding. Helping someone was typical of Ruby, just like how they would ditch her after the work is done, and how she'd come running back to Weiss's arms. A sneaky part of the Heiress loved it when that happened.

Sure, she was being selfish, but so what?

"So" Weiss continued "What were you gonna say to me?" she asked, wondering why Ruby called her in the first place.

"Yeah, about that" Ruby said while feeling a bit awkward.

"Can you inform Yang... If she asks?" it sounded a lot more stupid than it did in her head.

"Ruby..." Weiss sighed as she picked up a fancy white ribbon off her drawer and got off her table. She walked closer to Ruby and stood behind her.

She scooped in a large portion of Ruby's hair and gently drew it backwards, she used the ribbon to tie her hair into a ponytail, as she spoke-

"Ruby, you know that Yang doesn't care, right?" she reminded, while tying the ribbon into a flower knot.

Ruby didn't say anything, she just looked down at the floor. Well, Weiss wasn't wrong. She can't just keep pretending that Yang cared about her.

But still, she was still her sister... It wasn't easy to just let go like that.

_'You don't understand, Weiss... I wish you did' _she thought as she turned around and gave Weiss a smile, before leaving the room while muttering something to herself. She also made sure to take her headphones and placed it around her neck.

As she walked down the hallway of Beacon, she felt disturbed by the bustling noise of students.

"Tch" with a click of tongue, she pulled up her headphones from her neck, putting it on. With a little _click _,the music slithered in, cutting out any other noises. Luckily, it was still in her lofi playlist, which always calmed her down.

Continuing down the hallway, she often glanced around to see if she was receiving any stares. After all, when you are popular even among the school staff's with a reputation for bad temper, you are bound to get a lot of distasteful stares.

But she got none.

People were just walking around her, minding their own business.

No, more like they couldn't care about her. It had started two few months after the start of the school, where people labelled her as 'annoying' and always made an effort to ignore her. After that, nearly an year has passed, and people have subconsciously started forgetting about her. It wouldn't matter no matter how much noise she made, or how loud of an anger tantrum she threw anymore, people would just forget all about it and go with their day like nothing ever happened.

It was like a, non verbal way of saying that her presence didn't matter. And unfortunately, Yang was no different from them. And Ruby understood that very well.

Nearing the main entrance, she wondered ...

_'Yang and Dad are strong enough to look after themselves now... So I guess it wouldn't matter if I'm gon-' _

She couldn't completely form the sentence in her mind, as she was interrupted by someone placing a warm hand on her shoulder. She stopped in her tracks and turned around.

Amber eyes gazed on her, as Ruby took off her headphones.

"Oh, H-hey Cinder" Ruby greeted her with a warm smile. The said raven haired woman responded with a smile of her own, and said

"Evening, Ruby" she greeted back, while pulling Ruby into a quick hug. Even if the hug lasted for nothing more than two seconds, Ruby was quick to spot that Cinder's body was unusually warmer than a normal person. And that Cinder was an open person in general, considering that she was the type to hug a person on their first meet. Well, it was second for her, but yeah.

After the hug, Ruby took a moment to take in the older girl's clothing. She wore a simple black dress, and a velvet choker, while her hair hung freely over her shoulder.

_'She's so beautiful...' _Ruby thought, admiring a woman in disguise of a teenager in front of her.

"So..." Ruby awkwardly giggled "Where to first?" she asked, giving a genuinely sweet smile. She had never given a fake smile before, and was happy to keep it that way.

"Hmm..." Cinder hummed while placing a finger beneath her chin and slightly tilting her head.

"Ah, I know" she gave a low, soothing exclaim, while bringing her gaze back to Ruby's silver eyes. All the while, Ruby had been just looking at the two molten pools that Cinder possessed for eyes.

"How about we stop by a sweet shop first? Me and my teammates often enjoy ourselves with sweety treats after any... Event, you know" she lied, but masked it perfectly.

"S-sure! I too love sweets actually" Ruby chirped with innocence. Usually, a child like behaviour like Ruby's would've just annoyed Cinder, however, this time it just intrigued her deeper into the redhead's mysterious character.

Cinder wanted to know if the child like behaviour was just a facade, an excellent one at that. She wanted to know more about Ruby's scars, and she damn sure wanted to know how strong she was.

"C'mon! I know the best one in Vale!" Ruby exclaimed, while pulling the older woman by the hand. Cinder, while being perceptive of every little movement from Ruby, let herself be pulled along by the redhead.

* * *

_'So the short tempered Little Red loves cookies, huh. She's... Unguessable' _Cinder thought, while they made their way out of the sweet store, after seeing Ruby become gluttony incarnate in sight of her cookies.

Cinder had to admit, the pleased expression on the little red's face while she savoured the taste of the chocolate chipped cookies was so... Pure. She seemed like a child who knew absolutely nothing of the world. And the diabolic woman wouldn't have been reminded other wise, if not often catching glimpses of Ruby's neck scar, growing more and more curious of it every time she did so.

_'Just how deep should've the wound been, for it to leave such a scar?' _Cinder thought. Certainly, the wounds that Ruby sustained must've been life threatening, for it to have left a scar that wouldn't disappear even with aura.

"Ummm... Cinder?" Ruby called out with her somewhat squeaky voice, dragging Cinder out of her intrigued trans.

"Huh?" the raven haired woman blinked, as she noticed Ruby staring at her with a blush, while using her shirt collar to cover her neck scar, seemingly to have noticed Cinder staring at it.

"Oh, sorry for that, Ruby. I was lost in thought there..." Cinder apologized, while wearing a sheepish smile. Ruby didn't say anything in return.

A little awkward silence befell them, as they continued walking. Which annoyed Cinder, cause it made it hard to communicate. And without communication, she can't get what she needs.

Thankfully, Cinder was a lot more experienced when it came to this.

"So... Ruby" Cinder started, grabbing the redhead's attention, who hummed in response.

"That girl from earlier on..." Cinder stated, implying on the incident that took place earlier in the morning, where Ruby nearly killed Nora on her temper fits, and when Cinder saved her from Glynda's outrageous detention.

"Ah... That's Nora Valkyrie" Ruby stated, feeling a bit downcast at the mention of her former friend.

The change in Ruby's face was very subtle, but Cinder was sharp enough to know that she had caught a weak spot in her. And she was gonna pry open this spot, until it's open enough for her to enter.

_'All for information, of course' _Cinder assured herself, not wanting to get too close to the adorable redhead.

_'Not like I'll do something as stupid as getting attached, I just don't want to deal with unwanted attention'_

Anyway, Cinder noticed that Ruby had once again gone silent. Well, considering the walk till the next bullhead station was still a kilometre away, she had considerable amount of time to spend on Ruby before getting back to Beacon.

_'I've got some important business I gotta attend to in Beacon, so I can't waste too much time on this... Girl' _Cinder's thoughts deadpanned towards the end, as she noticed that Ruby's expression had changed... A lot.

She had a faint smile on her face, as she looked on towards the other side road end.

"Ruby..." she silently called, as she trailed her sight along with the redhead's.

At the other end of the road, were two kids, probably between ages 3-5. They looked like sisters, as they walked the road while holding onto each others hands. An adorable gesture, as they walked past the Ruby and Cinder, along with their mother following up behind them.

Once they were out of sight, Ruby continued walking with a sigh. But this time, her mood seemed to have lifted.

Cinder didn't really care about it.

"Ruby" Cinder called out again, a bit louder this time. Feeling a bit startled, Ruby responded to her call.

"Yeah?" Her voice seemed to have regained it's chirper. The down feel it had when she mention about Nora was now gone. Her silver eyes were once again brimming with a glassy glow.

In other words, Ruby was now in a more centred state of mind. In this state, Cinder couldn't get any answers out if her.

_'Tch!' _

she inaudibly clicked her tongue, cursing those two kid's existence.

_'Well, looks like I won't be getting any information from her for now...' _but there was still at least something she could do-

"Nothing, Ruby. I just wanted to say thank you for accompanying me today" Cinder said, gazing into the girl's eyes.

"If there is anything you want from me in return, don't hes-" Cinder was interrupted, as Ruby chirped-

"No no no! I'm just happy I could help!" the redhead grinned a cheery grin.

It somewhat annoyed Cinder on how unpredictable Ruby was. Just this morning, she was impressed by Ruby in more ways than one. Her scars, her petite yet toned body, her temper and not to mention, her skill. She gave her appearance like a force to be reckoned with, while now she was being as girlish as a girl could get.

But no matter how annoyed Cinder was...

_'I'll get what I want' _but rushing things wouldn't do her any good.

For now, she wanted to see how much she could take Ruby's kind nature to her advantage. That's why-

"Ruby..." Cinder called out as she stopped walking, Ruby doing the same. Ruby might've not noticed this, but the road they were currently on was empty, isolated to wind.

It just seemed like nobody really used this path anymore. But maybe it was Cinder who came here, while Ruby blindly followed her.

Not that she cared. It was just an empty road, nothing much.

"I..." Cinder looked down, while rubbing the her arm. .

Her eyes loomed on the ground, as she seemed too uncomfortable to stand still. All of sudden, her demeanor seemed a bit... nervous.

At least, that's how Cinder made it look like.

Ruby was feeling a bit conflicted, not exactly knowing weather to ask her what's wrong, or wait for her to speak. She couldn't help it, it just came out of nowhere.

All this time, she liked the fact that Cinder had that confident aura around her, and came off as a naturally strong person. However, she didn't know how to feel, when Cinder was behaving a bit reserved... A bit like herself.

"What's wrong, Cinder?" Ruby finally asked.

"I'm sorry..." Cinder apologized, as her shoulders heaved along a sigh.

"Um... For what?"

"I lied to you..." Cinder admitted, though not being completely honest. In order to continue speaking, she lifted her head to meet Ruby's gaze.

However, as unbelievable as it was, she found herself to be frozen to the ground.

Her bones seemed too rigid to move, and a little shiver crawled underneath her skin.

Or to say, she was petrified.

Ruby's face had contorted into a judgmental scowl, and her silver eyes flared with distaste.

**Hate, **radiating off her eyes. So much hate, that it could call out any Grimm, anywhere around them.

Thankfully, there weren't any around.

It seemed like the bubbly cookie monster that Cinder was with the entire day, was nowhere to be found. In her place, was the girl she met this very morning.

A girl with temper like no one, and so much Hate spilling off her, that Cinder could feel air shift uncomfortably.

It didn't really scare the raven haired woman, but it just caught her off guard.

Taking in a deep breath, she straightened herself and regained her composure.

_'that... Was surprising' _Cinder thought, before facing Ruby once again.

"What do you mean... You lied?" Ruby asked, trying not to grit her teeth.

Cinder came closer, leaving just few inches of gap between them.

"You see... I just wanted to help you" Cinder rubbed the back of her head, making an effort to look awkward.

"... What?" Ruby asked, confusion overtaking anger. Her expression softened, but her eyes still had a glint of hate.

Cinder placed a hand on Ruby's shoulder, and cupped her face with the other, as she gently smiled down at her.

Ruby didn't know what to do, as this was the closest anyone has ever been to her. Except Weiss, but that was a different tale.

"Wha... What do you mean by that?" Ruby asked, feeling a bit... Submissive, under the woman's touch. Maybe it was the pleasant warmth that was spreading through her cheek, she didn't quite know.

"You just seemed, so tired..." Cinder cooed, softly tracing her thumb over the barely visible dark circle, that Ruby had managed to hide very well.

"What...?" Ruby was too taken back to say anything. She didn't know how this new exchange student whom she met just few hours ago, already figured out something not even her partner, Weiss could.

"Ruby... You seemed so tired... For some reason, it looks like no one is looking out for you. That's why, I thought that maybe if I took you out, then maybe I could help you relax... Sorry if that troubled you"

It's hard for someone to just accept a lie like that. Especially for Ruby, who has grown up thinking that nobody actually cared for her.

However, Cinder was... Different. She surely didn't seem to have any ulterior motives, and didn't seem to be gaining anything out of this _date. _Truly, the only thing they did the entire was walk around Vale, nothing suspicious. Not to mention, there was truth in Cinder's words.

"I... But... Why?" she couldn't understand. Why would someone go so far, for someone they just met?

"We just met this morning... So why would you...?" up until now, she had been convinced that nobody ever had, or ever will care for her. But now, she was scared to be proved wrong.

"Ruby..." Cinder took a step closer to Ruby, who took a step back. Or at least, was about to, if not for Cinder wrapping an arm around her waist.

"Up until now, everyone had done nothing but hurt you, right...?"

"No!" Ruby cried, shoving Cinder away.

Her heart was racing, and she had unconsciously placed a hand over her chest. Clenching onto a portion of her white shirt, she waited for herself to calm down.

She didn't like this. She felt so vulnerable, and she didn't like it.

What was the point of getting so strong, if she could be seen through so easily?

"I-I'm sorry...!" She apologised to Cinder, who seemed a bit hurt due to Ruby shoving her off.

_'She __was just trying to help me! Why did I do that!?' _Ruby cursed herself.

_'Dammit! Why am I like this!?' _for Ruby, this was a chance for her to make actual friend. Someone as nice as Cinder... And she hated herself for blowing it.

"I'm so sorry!" She once again cried.

Before Cinder could really say anything, Ruby faced the sky and her body flashed red, followed by her bursting into a cluster rose petals.

Cinder, now surprised, just watched as the cluster of petals storms off to the blue sky, and flew away as if carried by the wind, until she could see them no more.

.

.

.

"Hmm" Cinder hummed amusedly, as her face regained it's smug expression.

"So that is her Semblance, huh? I gotta admit, it fits you perfectly, my Rose" she grinned.

Sure, this entire date didn't exactly go the way she wanted it to. But in the end, she still got satisfying results out of it.

Physically, Ruby Rose seemed a lot stronger than she anticipated. After all, it sure would take a lot of experience and and training, for someone to emit bloodlust potent enough for Cinder to feel it. And taking her earlier display of Dust control into account, she concluded that the esteemed 'Invincible girl', Pyrrha Nikos back at Beacon, couldn't even hold a candle against her Rose.

However, what Ruby Rose excelled physically, she lacked it mentally. Just like what Cinder saw, the redhead was mentally weak... And Cinder liked it.

"Ruby..." she called out to the girl who accidentally charmed her, with a grin spreading across her cheek.

Sure, Ruby may be a far greater threat than Pyrrha, but...

"You will be mine" Cinder promised, as she now knew what to do.

Picking out her scroll, she tapped on the desired contact. She was amused, when the person answered within three rings.

"Yes, Cinder?" Asked the voice of a girl.

"Emerald, I want you and Mercury to leave the dorm room for the night... For I, will be having over a very special guest"

"... Yes, Ma'am" Emerald complied, before Cinder hung up the call with a satisfied smirk.

She couldn't stop looking forward to it... **The**** night were an Angel tasted Sin.**

* * *

**So so sorry for the late update! I got hung up on something, but the updates will be much faster from now, I promise.**

**Thank you so much for the positive review on the first chapter, you guys are awesome!**

**Anyway, leave your thoughts on the chapter, for it is much appreciated, and suggestions if you have any. I'll read them all, and will also try considering few suggestions if they are good.**

**See you guys on the next chapter!**


	3. Stolen

Ruby's breath got caught up in her chest, as she marched down the hallway of Beacon.

_'Dammit!' _she cursed under her breath, as she silently stomp her way through buzzing noises of students.

As twisted as it seemed, for once she was glad that she was nearly non-existent in their eyes. After all, even though she was trying to keep a straight face till she reached her dormroom, her distraught was shoving on her face. Besides the fact that she blew away a chanced friendship with Cinder, she hated the idea of someone seeing her weak side.

As much as she wanted to, she couldn't deny her own emotional weaknesses. So the least she could do was hide it. She's been doing a good job at it for all these years, except now.

She was just too mad at herself. It wasn't often she met someone as nice as Cinder, and the way she blew it was painfully getting on her nerves.

For as long as she could remember, she was in pain for most of the waking time. Sometimes even during her sleepless nights, or the nightmare filled naps. Nobody ever cared, not even her _family_, as they were too busy with their own little insecurities... which Ruby took care of. For Ruby, it used to feel like she only existed to care of others, while got nothing in return.

Cinder might have as well been the one that could care for her, but maybe she wasn't so lucky.

She couldn't help it, after all those days spent in solitude, it felt like she didn't deserve Cinder's attention, nor her kindness.

She wanted to scream. Maybe even punch someone in the face.

But she knew that would only isolate her from everyone furthermore. Besides, she didn't want to hurt someone just because she in a fit of rage.

So the only available option was...

"Weiss..." her partner's name silently spilled out her lips, as she hurried towards her team's room. Her agape mouth turned into a hopeful smile, as her dorm door came into view.

Almost shifting to a sprint, she sprung the door open. Her emotions came bubbling up, as she chirped-

"Weiss! Emergenc...y"

Her smile dropped, as silently stared at the empty dorm room. Her eyes darted to the corners of the room, in hopes of finding her.

But she couldn't spot her anywhere.

Her hands ventured into her pocket, trying to pick out her scroll. Maybe Weiss was just studying in the library, or maybe just speaking to someone from class. Either way, Ruby knew she just had to give her a call, and she'd come back to comfort her-

"Red" a voice called out to her, causing her to turn around.

"Cardin?" she said, surprised to see him. It wasn't often he wondered anywhere near her dorm.

Regardless, she was curious if he needed something. Maybe he wanted her help with something.

_Sure, maybe she was a bit distraught right now, but maybe helping him out with whatever he wanted would make her feel better._

But-

"Are you looking for Schnee?" he asked, never hesitating to hide his hate for her in his tone. Well, he hated majority of students in Beacon to begin with.

"Um... yeah, I am... Do you know where she is?" she questioned.

"She's on a date with that Neptune guy. They left this afternoon..."

Hearing that, Ruby's heart dropped. Her throat constricted, as she felt a knot in her chest.

"I... see.." she said, swallowing hard.

Taking in a heavy breath, she turned around, facing her back towards Cardin. It was shallow attempt, so that her friend couldn't see how weak she was.

"You know..." Cardin began.

"If you are feeling alone without her... then me and my team are always ready to hangout with you... that's what's friends do, right?" he said.

Ruby might've not been the most social person whenever she was with team CRDL, but the way she was always looking out for them, asking them to not get in trouble, just made her look like a guardian. But they always appreciated it, as Ruby was just the sweetest person ever... Which also made them a bit concerned for her, since a person like her... always ends up being chewed out by others.

Maybe, he could help her just a bit-

"Nope" Ruby gave a chop to his head, surprising him.When he looked up to meet her gave, he was surprised furthermore.

She had a playful grin on her face, as she looked down at him with fake mirth.

"Look at you, trying to be cool and all" she chuckled.

"What? No, I-" Cardin began to speak, only be to cut off with another chop to the head, causing him to bite his tongue.

"Nope, Nope" Ruby chimed, while sarcastically shaking her head.

Holding him by the shoulders, she effortlessly turned him around and gave a lite push to his back. After stumbling forward a bit, he turned around to see her smiling at him with her hands folded.

"If you really think I'm feeling alone, then go me buy some cookies. Freshly baked and chocolate chipped" she informed, before circular crack marks began appearing all over her body.

"Geez... I was actually worried, you know?" Cardin informed, falling for Ruby's facade.

Ruby sighed and smiled again, as her body took on a shade of red.

"Remember, Cardin" Ruby called out, as her body began scattering away with flacks, which soon turned into rose petals. Right before her body scattered into a cluster of flying petals, she said-

"Neither you, nor anyone, should ever be concerned about me". And she was gone.

* * *

As the sun approached dawn, and the sky turned red, Ruby sat under a tree in the middle of Emerald Forest. Her back leaning against the scorched wood, she blankly looked around herself.

Grimms. The victims of her rage, fading away in dust and vapors.

Unlike during her training, Ruby had neither broken a sweat, nor was her heart beating any faster. Ruby knew, if was to expel all of her stress, not even the Emerald Forest would be enough. But still, she felt conflicted, as she gazed onto the red eyes in front of her. The Deathstalker silently stared at her, as it's life was starting to fade away in smoke.

For a moment, Ruby wondered what these Grimms thought of their killer, but she made a concious effort to dismiss the thought. Surely, it was something similar to what she felt, when she went on a slaughtering spree.

Just when her eyes began getting heavy, she felt her scroll buzzing in her pocket.

With a tired sigh, she pulled it out of her pocket, and brought it in front of her.

"Cinder..?" her voice almost regained its higher pitch, as she stared at the name on the screen.

Immediately attending the call, she blurted out-

"Cinder! I'm so sorry for earlier this evening- I didn't meant to be so rude! I was just-"

"Shhh"

Cinder's velvety tone silenced her with no effort, as Ruby just paused her apology.

"You don't need to apologize. I was never mad at you".

Ruby felt dumbstruck, as she involuntarily placed a hand over her mouth. Disbelief taking over her conciousness, she stayed silent for sometime.

Her mind nearly froze, as she was thrown way off the norm.

Apologising, was something she did very often, weather it was her fault or not. But the responses, they never varied. Out of the usual ignorance, the most she got was a distasteful scoff.

_It wasn't my fault? _Even though true, it felt weird.

"Hellooo?" Ruby flinched, breaking out of her frozen state, as cooed into the scroll.

"Ci... Cinder, I... I.." _I want to talk to you._

She couldn't bring herself to say it, wondering if it would be a trouble to her. She was happy that Cinder was nice enough to forgive her, but she wondered if she was pushing it.

Just then, as if the woman knew what was going on through Ruby's head-

"Can you come to my dormroom?"

"W-what?"

"Well... My teammates are out for themselves, and I'm kinda..." She chuckled sheepishly, before continuing.

"I'm kinda feeling alone, you know. I was _hoping _you'd keep me company this evening-"

"Yes!" Ruby exclaimed, as she got up to her feet. Her face had an innocent glee, as all the pain from the day started fading. She was needed by Cinder.

"Really? You don't have to-"

"No, no! I'm coming rightnow" Ruby chirped, bursting into a full on sprint, while holding the scroll to her ears.

"I'll be there in five- no, in one!"

"I'll be waiting" with that, Cinder hung up, giving Ruby the chance to burst out her semblance.

* * *

"My, she _is _fast" Cinder said, as she heard a knock on the door.

Adjusting her grin into a smile, she opened the door.

The sight that greeted her, was Ruby timidly standing behind the doorway. Her innocent gaze was fixed onto Cinder's, as if searching for something.

Rightnow, Ruby was looking for someone to hold onto her... And Cinder knew it all too well.

"Cinder, I-" Sparing Ruby some effort, Cinder broke her sentence with a hug. Throwing Ruby off her mental balance.

"Ruby... I'm so glad you came" Cinder whispered, while running her hands over Ruby's back.

Despite being the taller one, she loved the feeling of the redhead's toned, and well cut muscles. Warm, hard, and pulsing, it was driving her insane with lust.

Ruby just kept her head buried in Cinder's bust, loving the unexpected embrace. Even though she was pretty used to Weiss's embrace, Cinder just felt... different.

For one, Weiss's body was a lot colder compared to Cinder's... and besides, it always felt dishonest from the Heriess's side.

_Only if Weiss_...

She lifted her head up to meet Cinder's gaze, who brushed a strand of hair away from her face, before speaking.

"I thought you wouldn't come"

"What? Of course no-"

Ruby's words were halted, as she felt Cinder's hot lips against hers. Her eyes widened in surprise, as she froze within the woman's grasp.

The woman's lips were too hot to be normal, and it was almost melting away Ruby's innocent, puffy lips.

Cinder deepened the kiss, pressing Ruby's smaller body against hers.

Ruby could feel her body heating up, starting from her chest, which was squeezed against Cinder's mature breasts.

"Nm-Cinder, wai-" She was about to protest, but was Ignored, as the older woman continued kissing.

The smacking of their lips sounded a bit too lewd for Ruby, but she found herself too weak to protest.

deep down, she didn't want to ruin the moment.

_I wanted Weiss to be my first... _but damn the consequences, she thought, as she put an arm around Cinder's neck, and kissed back.

Taking that as her consent, Cinder nibbled on Ruby's lips, as she pulled her inside the room.

After closing the door, she pressed Ruby against it.

"Ruby"

"y-yeah?" Ruby breathed heavily, her cheeks tainted pink.

"Stick your tongue out" Cinder said, her molten eyes locking onto Ruby's.

Ruby was about to speak, but she stopped herself, knowing all too well that she would stutter.

With a bead of sweat running down her forehead, she closed her eyes and stuck her tongue out.

"Good girl" Cinder grinned, as she held Ruby's chin.

She lightly bit her tongue, causing Ruby to moan in pain, before continuing to wetly kiss her.

Feeling too tired to resist, she gave into the sensation of Cinder's searing tongue that dominated her mouth, threatening to ignite something within her.

Cinder easily lifted Ruby off her feet, holding her by the thighs. She went and sat on her bed, placing Ruby on her lap.

"Is this your first time?" Cinder asked, as she started unbuttoning Ruby's white shirt.

"Ye.. Yes" Ruby answered, as her heart thumped faster against her chest.

"Mine too..." but she knew how to do it... despite being a bit nervous herself.

As she continued undoing the rest of her buttons, she wondered why she was going so far with Ruby.

and then...

_Because I want to... That's all..._

Quickly dismissing the thought, she took of Ruby's shirt.

Her eyes widened, as Ruby was a lot more of a treat than she expected.

Chiseled abs and muscles, decently large breasts pressing against black bra, glistening with a little sweat, but most importantly, her scars.

"Ah!"

Taken over by a feral instinct, she ripped off the bra, and pinned Ruby to bed.

"C-Cinder?" Ruby nervously called out.

Completely ignoring her, Cinder's predatory eyes loomed over Ruby's exposed C cup breasts, which was milky white like the rest of her.

"Ah~" Ruby moaned, as Cinder latched her lips around her nipple.

Ruby arched her back and continued moaning, as Cinder ran her wet tongue over her sensitive button.

While Ruby was lost in the foreign sensation, she failed to notice her Scroll buzzing in her pocket... but Cinder did. She continued pleasing both herself and Ruby, as she slithered the scroll out of the girl's pocket.

_Weiss Schnee... _She read the name, as a wicked idea formed in her head.

She turned the volume to as low as she could, and answered the call.

_"Ruby! Where are you!? I'm worried sick-" _Weiss's concerned banter stopped as soon as it began, as sounds of Ruby's moaning echoed in.

_"Ruby... what are you doing?" _Weiss asked with disbelief. Only for Ruby to remain oblivious in pleasure.

Cinder placed the scroll aside, and sat up. Ruby was flushed pink, and was looking up at her with an intoxicated, submissive expression.

_This girl... _She was driving her mad with desire.

Cinder went to pull down Ruby's jeans, but stopped.

"Ruby" she called out, loud enough to make sure Weiss could hear it through the scroll.

"W-What?" Ruby asked, her chest still heaving.

"Do you want me to continue?" she asked, stifling a smirk.

_"Ruby! Who's with you!?" _The heiress screamed in, but it went unheard.

"Yes..." Ruby timidly answered, while covering her breasts.

_"Ruby!?"_

"Then say it" Cinder demanded, leaning down and cupping her cheek.

"W-what?"

"Say it"

_"Ruby... please talk to me"_

But Weiss's pleas were discarded, as she heard Ruby speak again.

"Please..." Ruby muttered meekly.

"Take me"

And Cinder did just that. She went on to satisfy both of their desires...

But she never turned off the scroll.

Because she wanted Weiss to know, that...

_On this day, Schnee, you lost something very, very precious. You had someone that people could die for, but since you discarded her, know that _I _have stolen her away from you._

* * *

**Don't worry, I'll focus on the plot a lot more from the next chapter. **


	4. Lost

_'I guess I now understand why the Schnee was so attached to her in the first place...' _Cinder thought to herself, as she softly ran her fingers through Ruby's hairs. With almost no tangles and locks, her fingers slid down her hairs, from jet black fading into strawberry red, like freshly woven silk.

_'This might turn into an addiction...' _Cinder warned herself. Even though she doubted that she'd become attached to _Little Red_, she still _had _to admit that Ruby was just the best.

After all, even though the redhead was, according to Cinder a natural born killer, she still had another side to her. The real her.

Lying on her side, she traced a finger down Ruby's nape, as Ruby was huddled close to Cinder's chest, cuddling their naked bodies even as she slept.

With intrigue and lust, Cinder ran her hand over Ruby's exposed back, feeling her scars over chiseled muscles.

"hmm..." Cinder hummed, wondering about Ruby's experience in battle, to have endured such deep wounds. Besides, her own back was aching too, with all the scratch marks left by Ruby, that were clawed lovingly by the redhead in an euphoric high. But Cinder didn't complain, for it was well worth it.

"Ruby" Cinder purred into Ruby's ear, as she cuddled tighter, embracing the innocent warmth that had been offered to her.

"Ruby, are you awake?" she whispered, squeezing her hand below Ruby's hip.

"Mmn..." Ruby softly moaned, indicating that she was indeed awake, and listening.

"That was your first time, wasn't it?" Cinder asked, clearly knowing the answer.

Ruby just nodded in response, before nestling her head in between Cinder's bosom. Unaware, she was entranced by Cinder ash like fragrance, and she welcomed it. Besides, her body was so warm, making her want to hug the older woman a lot harder.

"Are you fine it with it?" Cinder asked, because as far as she knew, girls her age made an annoyingly big deal of even their first kisses, let alone sex.

"Fine with what?" Ruby asked, taking her face off Cinder's cleavage, her face mopped with strands of red and black hair.

"You know, with your first time being with me?" Cinder asked, keeping her face expressionless. What Ruby thought of this relationship, would be revealed by her answer.

However-

"Doesn't matter"

Ruby's reply came in a form that Cinder never expected. Besides, Cinder didn't like the cold edge that occupied Ruby's voice all of a sudden. It was the same coldness that everybody else in the school received from Ruby, and she didn't want to be lumped with them. Especially not after coming this far with her.

"We were just..." Ruby deadpanned towards the end, but with a sigh, she forced herself to speak.

"We were just satisfying each other... it didn't mean anything else... Right?" Ruby said, as she sat up.

What put Cinder on the edge wasn't what Ruby thought about last evening, but Ruby's expression when she said the words. It was like Ruby was stating the obvious, while _Cinder _was the one with childish expectations. Cinder didn't know what she expected from Ruby when she slept with her, but now she knew that Ruby expected nothing.

"I... I'll see you around, after classes.." Ruby said as she sat on the edge of the bed. With her back facing the raven haired women, she picked up her bra and put it on, doing the same with her panties. Then, as she got of the bed, for a moment, Cinder's hand involuntarily reached out to stop Ruby, but the redhead was ever oblivious of it.

Picking up her shirt that was fallen on the floor, Ruby began putting them on. As she did the buttons, she considered kissing Cinder before she left, but brushed the thought away, as it seemed unnecessary. She put on her jeans and wore her sneakers, and just before leaving, she turned and-

"Cinder" she called out, gaining the woman's attention.

"Thanks for last night... I needed it" she smiled, before leaving the room while closing the door behind her.

With that, Cinder was left alone in the silent room. For a minute, she just stared at the door through which Ruby left, her mind being blank.

"What just happened..." she wondered. As it appeared, she had misjudged Ruby.

She thought by seducing Ruby and showing her some 'love', she could easily coax her into not being a threat for her plans. But Ruby... she proved too much maturity. All of a sudden, Cinder was very aware of the thorns around Ruby's heart. Thorns that wouldn't just burn away from a little warmth.

Ruby had never felt any form love from anyone, and thus she had stopped craving it.

"just like me..." Cinder said to herself, as she ran her fingers through her Raven hairs in an irritated manner. She didn't like it, she didn't like the idea of being forgotten by Ruby. She didn't know why she felt that way, but she didn't care.

Shaking her head, she closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. The scratches on her back pulsed, as she calmed her mind.

"Perhaps I was too easy on her" Cinder grinned, as she opened her eyes again, this time her molten iris regaining their diabolic glow.

At first, it was just a safety measure to get Ruby on her side, but now, it was a much deeper need. She didn't know why she was feeling so infatuated with Ruby, but she didn't care. She wanted Ruby, and she was gonna get her.

* * *

A loud slap rang across RWBY dorms, alerting the students who were walking by.

Ruby stood at the door, facing her right side, as her left cheek filled with red hand imprint. Her face had a mixture of shock, surprise, and little pain. Slowly facing forward, she spoke in a cracked voice-

"Weiss...?"

Her partner stood in front of her, her blue eyes glaring daggers like they were accusing her of something.

"And where the hell were you last night?" she asked, her voice just as cold as she seemed.

"last night...? I was with a frien-" Ruby tried to explain, but was cut off with another slap cracking against her cheek.

"Don't lie to me!" Weiss yelled, a tear running down her cheek.

"Weiss, trust me-"

"Trust you? why would she?" came another voice, this time from behind Weiss.

"Yang..." Ruby never realised her sister's presence up until now, because Weiss was way too intimidating.

"Yang... this is between me and her, so please-" she tried to politely address the situation, but-

"Weiss is our friend, so when someone hurts her, we _will _get involved" came a third voice. Looking to her side, she notice Blake leaning on the wall next to her, eyeing her with disgust.

"What... hurt her...? I didn't... why are you..." she didn't understand the unfair accusation mounted on her.

She had been so well behaved, she hasn't yelled at anyone since... forever. Yet, just cause she decided to get her mind off the neglect they have put her through...

"I didn't... hurt anyone..." Ruby mumbled, as she took a few steps back.

"Why are... why is this happening...?" she asked herself as she looked around to tstudents were gathered around her. She felt her heart race up, as she was aware that all the eyes were on her now.

"Weiss... please, just listen-" she wasn't allowed a chance to explain herself.

"Shut up, Ruby..." Yang spoke again, while comforting Weiss.

"It's okay Weiss, at least now you know what a liar she really is-"

"Shut up!" Ruby yelled, interrupting her sister. And she did a good job at it, as her sudden boldness caused Yang to flinch.

But that didn't matter now-

"I've never... I have never lied to you! Not to Weiss, not to Blake, not to Yang!" Ruby yelled, feeling her tears threatening to creep up to her eyes.

She didn't want it. She had grown stronger. She was not weak anymore. She was not so fragile as to breakdown for mere harsh words... from the person she loved.

"Yet... why, why are you calling me a liar!?" she screamed at her startled teammates, who just continued to stare at her with mixed emotions. Blake had an unreadable expression, mostly one of pity, something which Ruby never wanted anyone to feel for her. Yang had an expression of shock, and then anger, like she been offended by someone inferior to her. And lastly, Weiss, who had tears trailing down her pale cheeks, showed some fragments of remorse.

_'My chest hurts...' _Ruby thought to herself, as Yang stepped forward.

"Don't raise your voice against me, you bitch!" she spat out, as she withdrew her hand for a slap.

For a moment, Ruby's hand twitched, muscle memory acting up on self defense. But Ruby denied it.

_'Heh... as if I can ever hurt you, Yang...' _she thought to herself, as she just closed her eyes, deciding accept her sister's anger.

She waited for the hit to come. But it never did.

Once she started hearing murmurs around her, she opened her eyes and looked around. The onlookers were whispering something to themselves, while few of them were offering her looks. Finally, she looked up to face Yang, and-

"tch! Who the hell are you now?" Yang asked with mounting anger showing in her tone. She glared at the girl that had grabbed her hand.

The girl didn't show any sign of answering her, except, she just let go of Yang's arm while giving her a penetrating stare and a cocky grin. This further enraged the blondie, as she turned to face her. The shorter girl showed no signs of fear in her green eyes. Despite her black her hair tied in a childlike twin tails, she still gave off an aura of experience.

Ruby just looked on for a while longer. At first, she was just curious about the newcomer, but now she was wondering if she had seen the girl somewhere else.

_'That face... i- wait! More importantly-' _she had to stop a possible fight between Yang and the newcomer, who ever she was.

However, her efforts were spared, as-

"Ms. Xiaolong!" came the stern call from Glynda, soon joined by the professor's heels clicking against the tiles. Even Yang's intimidating aura faltered against Glynda's scornful glare, as she snatched her hand away from the short girl.

"Who..." Ruby wondered how the sounds of the little quarrel found their way to Goodwitch's ears, however, she soon got her answer to that. Right behind Glynda, stood the duo of Mercury and Emerald. While the silver haired teen had a knowing smirk on his face, the red eyed girl just gave her a smile.

While Glynda continued reprimanding Yang for her infamous delinquency, Ruby's eyes stayed focused on the students from Haven.

"They were Cinder's..." She saw them both along with Cinder when they first met. That maybe not the case for the short, green eyed girl, but she could easily tell she was with them as well. But the real question was-

_'Why are they helping me..?'_ It was the same question with Cinder as well. She still has no idea why the older girl was suddenly all compassionate about her, and now this incident. She tried to think of any possible reason for their aid, but couldn't come up with any. It all made no sense.

Before she could ponder on it any longer, she felt a tug on her shirt. It was the short girl again. This time, she took Ruby's hand in hers, and led her out of the hallway. Ruby ignored looks from the students and silently followed her, wondering what she was up to. But to her surprise, she was simply led into Cinder's dorm room.

However, there was an absence of the older girl in the room, basically leaving Ruby all alone with a stranger. The girl motioned Ruby to sit down on the bed, and as she did, the girl closed the door before sitting down next to her. Leaning back on her arms, the girl offered Ruby a smile.

"um..." Ruby wanted to question her motives, but found herself hesitating. Not because she lacked the courage, but because the girl started typing something on her scroll.

Once she was done, she showed the words to Ruby, which read _"Relax"._

"huh... yeah... thanks.."

_'So she doesn't talk...' _she was glad she didn't question her for anything.

The girl simply waved her hand, implying it was nothing. Ruby expected the girl say/do something else, as she wasn't sure she could handle a moment of awkward silence. Luckily, the girl did something.

She connected a pair of earphones to her scroll, and plugged it into her ears. She showed the screen to Ruby again, this time, the words were-

_"You can stay however long you need to, I'm sure Cinder wouldn't mind." _

"Oh... okay. Thanks" Ruby replied. She was glad the girl didn't try to ask her anything about the conflict, and gave her some space. Ruby appreciated that.

Obviously, the conversation with the girl was over, as she had made herself comfortable at the corner of the bed while being immersed in her scroll. She noticed that Ruby was looking at her, and before Ruby could turn away, the girl gently patted the spot next to her.

Well aware on what it implied, the redhead simply did what the girl asked. As she sat down next to her, the girl offered one of the earphone plugs. Silently putting it on her ear, she made herself comfortable next to the girl, who placed the scroll horizontally over her knees, while it had a video playing in it.

_'Sailor Moon... I used__ to watch that a lot...' _Ruby thought with a smile, as she let herself sink in. After all, it was much better than thinking back to today's incident. Just for a while, she wanted to be ignorant.

Ruby felt the girl lean on her slightly, as her slender arm pressed itself against Ruby's well toned ones. Ruby gave no notice for that, as she was already immersed in the show.

Enjoying the little nostalgia trip, she stopped worrying about the flow of time...

* * *

It turned out the girl was quite the binge watcher, thanks to which Ruby was left undisturbed for almost 4 hours. During the entire time, nobody came into the room, nor did anybody leave. By the time Ruby was on 3rd episode, she was settled with finishing the entire arc. And the girl never seemed to mind, in fact, welcomed the silent companionship.

However, seeing that it was afternoon already, Ruby decided to take her leave. The girl simply saw her to the door. Though there wasn't any exchange between the two, it was obvious that Ruby was welcomed again if she ever wanted.

Appreciating the hospitality, Ruby left the dorm room while closing the door behind her. And then-

_'Ah... I forgot to ask her name...__' _Ruby thought to herself with a sigh. Oh well, she could simply ask her another time.

As she walked down the hallway, she saw that for once, it wasn't buzzing with students. Which made sense, since it was lunch time. Speaking of which, her stomach was growling too, it's about time she ate something before turning into a gluttonous cookie monster.

The cafeteria wasn't really that good when it came to food, but she didn't really complain. She had been out on hills and woods, hunting alone at many nights and she had learned how little people appreciate a decent meal. But that wasn't a problem now, no matter how plain the cafeteria's food was, she could never complain about it. After all, she would simply forget about it once she's eaten a bowl full of cookies.

But the real problem was that her wallet was left in RWBY dorm...

Her walk came to a stop, and so did her sweet ignorance. The memories from few hours ago resurfaced.

She was now starting to feel worried.

_Maybe some fresh air could help. _Though she wasn't on the mood for another trip to Emerald Forest. So she went for the next best thing, the terrace. No one really occupied that part of the school, at least not that she knew of.

Thankfully, no one interrupted her walk up to the top. Even though it was afternoon, the weather wasn't really hot, for which Ruby was thankful for. Silently taking her seat on the edge, she let her legs dangle freely. At first, she was worried if the students roaming on the courtyard would notice her, but thankfully, they didn't even register presence. Like the usual.

Now that she was feeling a bit secured, she let out a deep sigh, relaxing her shoulders. With a slightly clearer head, she decided to think out today's conflict.

"Weiss..." Ruby muttered to herself.

"I... have I lost you already?" she slumped down.

Weiss meant something to her beyond just a friend, she really did. She was a shoulder to lean on whenever Ruby felt the worst. She was someone that was really important to Ruby... and the image of her standing in between Blake and Yang remained vivid in her head.

The rest of Remnant had already grew cold for Ruby. And now, Weiss has abandoned her to embrace that cold...

The realization hurt her a lot more than she expected it to.

_'Weird... I thought I was used to this by now...'_ Ruby's chin quivered for moment, and then she cupped her face with a hand.

Yang's apathy was something that Ruby was beyond used to at this point, though she had no idea she why was being hated on so much for no reason at all.

But maybe, she knew since when it started...

_"Y-Yang... Please stop this... I'm scared..."_

_"Tch! Not so loud, dad might hear..."_

_"But... but this feels wrong."_

_"Then let's finish this quickly... now, hurry up and take off your clothes..."_

A shiver ran through Ruby's body, as she snapped back to reality. She clutched her hands to her sides and breathed deeply.

"Why... why do I still remember _that_!?" Ruby grit her teeth in annoyance and regret, as she tried to hold back her budding anger. She couldn't let this rage build up anymore, after all, this anger was directed towards her sister, who had hurt her.

"Sometimes, memories _can _be hard to forget. Especially when you aren't sure about moving on." came a womans voice from behind her.

Upon hearing the voice, Ruby's face changed, as if upon instinct. Once being contorted in anger, now was undisturbed and emotionless.

She stood up on the edge and turned around to face the woman... it may have been ages since she's heard that voice, but she recognized it with no trouble.

"After all these years did you finally remember me, mom?" she asked.

The woman in red and black tribal clothing remained silent for a while, staring at Ruby through her Grimm mask as her bushy black hair slightly flailed in the wind. And then taking the mask off her head, she smiled fondly at Ruby. With a little guilt showing in her red eyes, she spoke-

"I never forgot, Ruby"


End file.
